The Daily Beast: Hollywood's Messiest Breakups

1. Halle Berry and Gabriel Aubry

At first, the breakup seemed amicable. In 2010, Halle Berry said of her split from model Gabriel Aubry: "We're still friends, we love each other very much." But recently, things have turned ugly, as the couple engages in a vicious custody battle over their 2-year-old daughter, Nahla. Though they were never married, Aubry filed a paternity petition in December 2010. He alleged that Berry would leave Nahla unattended while she was on set. And Berry has come out swinging: her rep recently told Us Weekly, "Halle has serious concerns for her daughter's well-being while in the care of her father for any extended period of time and is prepared to take all necessary steps to protect her." Aubry hasn't made a comment about the custody battle, but on Wednesday, RadarOnline reported that Aubry has abusive voicemails, text messages and emails from Berry. Said a source: "She left a crazy message on Gabe's cell just after some pictures came out of him at a Lakers game with a girl last year... She is mega, mega p***ed in the message, calling him, and the girl, all kinds of names—it's certainly something Halle wouldn't want heard." Meanwhile, Berry reportedly claims that her daughter, Nahla "cries hysterically" when she has to see her father, and that Aubry put Nahla "in immediate harm's way" last summer. (Image: Alberto E. Rodriguez / Getty Images) See the Full story at The Daily Beast

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Halle Berry’s custody battle with her ex-boyfriend, Gabriel Aubry, is getting ugly. On Wednesday, she claimed that their 2-year-old daughter, Nahla, “cries hysterically” when she sees her father. Then, a source revealed that Aubry has received verbally abusive emails and voicemails from Berry. From Tiger and Elin to Sandra Bullock and Jesse James, The Daily Beast surveys the nastiest celebrity breakups of all time. See the Full story at The Daily Beast

The marriage between Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton was so nice they tried it twice. Neither panned out, but the Hollywood beauty and revered actor made for quite the steamy duo in Cleopatra in 1963. All told, Taylor racked up eight marriages to seven men—including back-to-back affairs with Burton—but her fans fondly remembered their favorite duo as “Liz and Dick.” (Image: AP Photo) See the Full story at The Daily Beast

The wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer was viewed by 750 million people, but their breakup was a drawn-out, far more public mess. The royal couple was living in separate quarters by the late 1980s, and by the time the media latched on to Charles’ friendship with Camilla Parker Bowles, the scrutiny made their split, which became official in 1996, inevitable. (Image: Bob Thomas, Popperfoto / Getty Images) See the Full story at The Daily Beast

Britney Spears and Kevin Federline’s marriage was the quintessential example of a union of the lowest common denominator. When the chaotic singer filed for divorce in 2006, her former back-up dancer husband was floored and a distracting public battle was waged over the legal custody of their two children. Spears’ parenting skills were highly scrutinized—remember the “no seatbelts” photos?—and K-Fed retains custody, with Spears receiving visitation rights. (Image: Sara De Boer / Retna) See the Full story at The Daily Beast

Christie Brinkley and her architect hubby Peter Cook had one of those New York soap-opera divorce trials. A few of the down-and-dirty details: Cook slept with his 18-year-old assistant, then gave her a $300,000 bribe to keep their affair quiet, and had a $3,000-a-month habit for swinger and porn sites. Their 12 years of marriage ended with the cover girl holding sole custody rights. (Image: Alex Wong / Getty Images) See the Full story at The Daily Beast

Madonna and Guy Ritchie were long rumored to have marital problems, and after the Material Girl filed for divorce, citing Ritchie’s “unreasonable behavior,” their eight-year marriage was dissolved on January 2, 2009. Neither appears heartbroken—Madge was soon linked to 23-year-old model Jesus Luz. (Image: Jon Furniss, WireImage / Getty Images) See the Full story at The Daily Beast

After Tiger Wood's sex scandal that kept growing and growing, one thing came to a swift end: his marriage to Elin Nordegren. Rumor had it that Nordegren originally sought $750 million in her divorce from Tiger Woods, but in the end, she reportedly received $100 million. As part of their divorce settlement, Nordegren must remain silent about his numerous alleged affairs, since a friend told London's The Sun tabloid that Tiger's main fear was "her telling her story after he's rebuilt his reputation, sending him back to the gutter." Custody of the couple's 3-year-old daughter and 1-year-old son was also in dispute—Nordegren wanted to have the children spend part of the year in Sweden, and Woods wanted to make sure he had a say in how they're raised. Nordegren ended up with sole legal custody, and the pair will share physical custody. (Image: David J. Phillip / AP Photo) See the Full story at The Daily Beast

Through most of his nearly 30-year marriage to Robyn Gibson, Mel called his wife a "saint" for sticking by him through his rehab stints over the years—and he credited her with bringing him back from the brink. They separated in 2006, just one month after his DUI arrest, but Robyn did not file for divorce until 2009—around the time that Mel announced that he and his then-girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva were expecting a baby. Despite Robyn's public comments supporting Mel, the divorce quickly became one of Hollywood's most expensive. The two have yet to come to a final divorce agreement. (Image: Ron Galella / Getty Images) See the Full story at The Daily Beast

It seems so long ago, but it was only early 2010 that Sandra Bullock and Jesse James were happily married. One week after her Best Actress Oscar win, Bullock found herself locked in one of the fastest marriage spirals: numerous women came forward and alleged affairs with James. Within days, Bullock canceled her press appearances as more and more stories came forward—and eventually a photo leaked out of James conducting a Nazi salute. The following divorce came swiftly, and although Bullock maintained a quiet public image—even adopting her son Louis, in secret—James went on Nightline and referred to himself as "the most hated man in the world." Their divorce was finalized only three months after his affairs became public and paved the road for her to become a single mother for Louis—with no parental rights for James. A final insult to Bullock: in January, James announced he is marrying one of his many women: tattoo artist Kat Von D. (Image: Ethan Miller, WireImage / Getty Images) See the Full story at The Daily Beast

Though several marriages of the Real Housewives franchise end in divorce, the messiest this year was that between Kelsey Grammer and his wife, Camille, which played out over several painful episodes of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. As depicted on the show, the rift began when Grammer left Camille and their two children at home in Malibu while he went to New York to appear on Broadway in La Cage aux Folles. There, he met a 29-year-old flight attendant named Kayte Walsh, and promptly called things off with Camille. "I offered to go to therapy…. But his mind was already made up," Camille said of their breakup. "I started crying and he said, 'Oh, grow up.' I said, 'What about our children?' and he said, 'They'll get over it.' It was harsh." Camille filed for divorce in July, claiming that during their marriage the couple amassed a fortune of $100 million. They are currently at war over the divorce settlement, as Camille has reportedly turned down $40 million and wants $50 million instead. Meanwhile, Kelsey and Kate are rushing to the altar—and will reportedly tie the knot in a lavish $100,000 ceremony at the Plaza hotel on February 25. (Image: Noel Vasquez / Getty Images) See the Full story at The Daily Beast

At first, the breakup seemed amicable. In 2010, Halle Berry said of her split from model Gabriel Aubry: "We're still friends, we love each other very much." But recently, things have turned ugly, as the couple engages in a vicious custody battle over their 2-year-old daughter, Nahla. Though they were never married, Aubry filed a paternity petition in December 2010. He alleged that Berry would leave Nahla unattended while she was on set. And Berry has come out swinging: her rep recently told Us Weekly, "Halle has serious concerns for her daughter's well-being while in the care of her father for any extended period of time and is prepared to take all necessary steps to protect her." Aubry hasn't made a comment about the custody battle, but on Wednesday, RadarOnline reported that Aubry has abusive voicemails, text messages and emails from Berry. Said a source: "She left a crazy message on Gabe's cell just after some pictures came out of him at a Lakers game with a girl last year... She is mega, mega p***ed in the message, calling him, and the girl, all kinds of names—it's certainly something Halle wouldn't want heard." Meanwhile, Berry reportedly claims that her daughter, Nahla "cries hysterically" when she has to see her father, and that Aubry put Nahla "in immediate harm's way" last summer. (Image: Alberto E. Rodriguez / Getty Images) See the Full story at The Daily Beast